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One of the Mayor Daley's rising stars at City Hall is about to take over Chicago's cash-strapped transit system. The mayor is expected to announce that 38-year-old Richard Rodriguez will be the new head of the CTA. (Published Thursday, Feb 26, 2009)

Updated at 2:26 PM CST on Wednesday, Jul 22, 2009

Mayor Daley is expected to name a new boss at the Chicago Transit Authority today, and the financial state of the agency may make the job less than appealing.

Richard Rodriguez, 38, appears to be on the express train at City Hall as he takes on the CTA and it's crippling $242 million budget deficit.

Who Will Run Chicago's Cash Strapped CTA?

One of the Mayor Daley's rising stars at City Hall is about to take over Chicago's cash-strapped transit system. The mayor is expected to announce that 38-year-old Richard Rodriguez will be the new head of the CTA. (Published Thursday, Feb 26, 2009)

Rodriguez, who was named by Daley last year to head of the city's aviation department, also acted as commissioner of the city's building department. While with construction and permits he's been credited with slashing the wait for building permits by 40 percent.